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The importance of this chapter is that it explains why Yahweh and the prophet Samuel rejected Saul. It is a frequent human error to think that God will overlook and forgive all one’s sins so long as one is careful to attend church. Several OT prophets had to attack this false... Read More →

Israel now had a king, and one who had already proved himself a capable soldier. So, they had a strong sense of well-being. However, Samuel’s speech analyzed the present situation and explored the past, in order to provide guidance for the future. The speech makes it clear that... Read More →

How will Samuel go about finding and making a king? Naturally every reader must have known that Saul had been Israel’s first king, so the introduction of his name causes no surprise. The story goes on to explain the circumstances in which Samuel and Saul met. Read More →

The first king was Saul, and he naturally plays a prominent part in the story. But the biblical author never lets us forget Samuel; indeed, in the biblical writer’s view Samuel remained the real leader of Israel, even when he had handed over military and political affairs to the... Read More →

The scene now shifts westwards, from the hills towards the coastal plain, which the Philistines had conquered a century earlier. This small but powerful nation had begun to dominate parts of Israel in the time of Samson, and their well-trained army now posed a new threat. It is... Read More →

Israel needs leadership, and the Lord meets that need through barren Hannah. He gives a son, Samuel, whom she dedicates to the Lord’s service. She praises the Lord for his compassion to the downtrodden and anticipates a divinely empowered king. Samuel serves under Eli and... Read More →

What is Easter? And why do Christians place such a high importance on this holiday? Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the tomb, occurring three days after His crucifixion. It fulfills the prophecy of the Messiah’s persecution, death for our sins, and... Read More →

Palm Sunday commemorates when Jesus entered Jerusalem and was greeted by people waving palm branches. This event serves as a reminder for Christians to welcome Jesus into their hearts and be ready to follow Him. The Palm Sunday service also includes a reading of the Passion,... Read More →

“It is a profound mistake to imagine that Christianity ever intended to dissipate the bewilderment and even the terror, the sense of our own nothingness, which come upon us when we think about the nature of things. It comes to intensify them. Without such sensations there is no... Read More →

In AD 33, the most significant event in human history happened – Jesus Christ died on the cross for the sins of the world. He died that we might live.  Not only did He die, but He rose again on the 3rd day.  The resurrection of Jesus forms the cornerstone of my faith as a... Read More →